At the same time, serious consideration should be given to creation of a Contingency Energy Fund (CEF) that could be drawn upon (like the emergencycurrency stabilization package and food aid being offered by Western nations).
And in the event of a financial emergency a currency board has less freedom than a central bank to act as lender of last resort, because the board cannot boost the money supply to aid troubled banks.
Viktor Gerashchenko, chairman of the Soviet Gosbank, in a statement during the BIS sessions said that the USSR had already secured an understanding from several Western central banks that it could raise hard currency in an emergency by pledging gold to be bought back at a later date.